With an aim to improve kharif production in the Bundelkhand region, the Yogi government has proposed a special subsidy scheme for the purchase of certified seeds and introduced cluster farming promising financial help of up to Rs 10 lakh. Besides, the government has also decided to bring state PCS examination at par with the IAS exam.

The government has also proposed to make Shahjahanpur as the 17th nagar nigam of the state. The decisions were taken in the Cabinet meeting held on Tuesday.

Briefing reporters, government spokesman Srikant Sharma said that government had made plans to increase kharif production in Bundelkhand in the next three years. “The government has increased subsidy for purchase of certified seeds and mini kits for paddy and pulses from the existing 50 per cent to 80 per cent. The target is to increase the crop area as well as kharif production by 2021,” he said.

Bundelkhand accounts for bumper rabi crop but kharif crop, which includes paddy and pulses, is poor. “The government has proposed cluster farming where farmers can come together and form a cluster having an acreage of 50 hectares. If farmers go ahead and get their cluster registered, the government will give a financial benefit of Rs 10 lakh,” he said.

Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi said that kharif area at present was 8.58 lakh hectare and that should go up to 16.02 lakh hectares by 2021. The government proposes to introduce water sprinkler schemes and Talab-khet project under which water will be made available for kharif. “We have set a target to revive 5000 ponds this year. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has allocated Rs 40 crore for this Khet-talab project,” the minister said.

The government also proposes to give 68813 quintals of seeds in Bundelkhand. Of this, 8100 quintals will be supplied by government agencies while the rest by private players.

In another decision, the government has decided to bring PCS examination at par with the Civil Services examination. Changes have been proposed in case of evaluation and introduction of subjects. Earlier, the PCS examination used to be of 1700 marks with written accounting for 1500 and 200 marks was for interview. “The interview will now have 100 marks while the written will be of 1500 marks. Thus, the total marking will be of 1600,” spokesman said.

Changes are also proposed in General Knowledge test while new subject like Medical Science will been introduced in PCS.

Nagar nigam: The Cabinet has given its assent to make Shahjahanpur as 17 nagar nigam of the state. The spokesman said that new nagar nigam will comprise nagar palika parishad, nagar panchayat roza and 14 revenue villages. “Once Shahjahanpur becomes the nagar nigam, it will not only generate its own resources but also give employment to youths,” he said.

Live Streaming: All functions of Chief Minister will now be streamed live. ANI has been given the licence to stream these functions. The spokesman said that Diwali function was streamed live and over 2.5 crore people watched across the globe. Thus, it has been decided that all the main functions will be streamed live, he said.

Children’s hospital: The government has approved demolition of a dilapidated hostel in SRN Medical College in Allahabad and construct a children’s hospital there. The government will earn Rs 13.52 lakh by selling the scrap,” he said.

The government has also increased the retirement age of director, Noida PG Super Speciality Hospital to 70 years.